Romney in the Spotlight

The surprisingly good showing of Mitt Romney in the first 2008 Republican straw poll, has put the spotlight on the Massachusetts governor. Tom Bevan, RealClearPolitics, was there, and also gives a snapshot of a Democrat contender, Virginia's former governor, Mark Warner. Via the Sun Times.

And Romney has received an invitation to the Vatican for the investiture of Boston's new cardinal. AP:

The trip to Rome next week is further evidence of a growing relationship not only between Romney and the local leadership of the Roman Catholic Church, but also of the importance of Catholics and social conservatives in the campaign that Romney is contemplating.

The Republican governor recently filed a bill that would allow a Catholic social service agency to deny adoptions to gay couples.

AP's language is harsh. Rather, the proposed law would allow the church to continue to serve children in need of adoption. And they can continue to refer gay couples to other agencies. Massachusetts law conflicts with church teachings on this issue, and church leaders had sought an exemption so they could continue to serve special needs children. Romney is seeking a narrowly drawn law to allow the church a freedom of conscience exemption.Here's another AP story, with a different byline:

"The world was very different when Charities began this ministry at the threshold of the 20th century," the Rev. J. Bryan Hehir, president of Catholic Charities, and trustees chairman Jeffrey Kaneb said in a joint statement. "The world changed often and we adapted the ministry to meet changing times and needs. At all times we sought to place the welfare of children at the heart of our work.

"But now, we have encountered a dilemma we cannot resolve," they said.

C-Span will air an interview with Romney Sunday night. He's a Republican governor in a Blue state, as Warner is a former Democrat governor in a Red state. 2008 is already starting to look interesting.